Robot-Based Handling in Cutting and Seedling Propagation for Afforestation – OrbiRoboTree

The OrbiRoboTree project aims to automate processes for efficient seedling propagation through innovative solutions and the use of a flexible robotic system.

The application of robotics in this new field is advancing automation in cutting propagation and has significant positive environmental impacts, as this research can support urgently needed large-scale (re)afforestation efforts both nationally and globally. By cultivating cuttings within the OrbiPlant® indoor cultivation system, the project approach enables greater efficiency in the propagation process.

In this cultivation system, environmental conditions are precisely controlled to maximise yields while minimising resource use, with a particular focus on reducing the consumption of nutrients and water. The mobile design of the system enables installation at different locations, helping to shorten and optimise supply chains and transport routes. By enabling a robot to handle different tree species flexibly and perform multiple processes (such as picking up, inserting, and removing cuttings), the need for complex specialised machinery can be reduced. To achieve this, innovative control and regulation approaches using AI-based image processing are being developed, adapted, and implemented without limiting the mobility of the overall system.